SHARE

National organization recognizes Schoppe-Sullivan

One of Ohio State University’s most influential researchers on parenting and the social and emotional development of children has been recognized with one of the top honors in her field.

Sarah Schoppe-Sullivan, professor of human sciences, College of Education and Human Ecology, has been named a Fellow of the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR). Less than 3 percent of living members receive the prestigious distinction given for outstanding contributions to the field of family relations.

“Dr. Schoppe-Sullivan’s record demonstrates outstanding scholarly contributions and significant service to the field of family science,” said Jeanne Strand, director of governance and operations for NCFR.

The give and take between mothers and fathers – and what their relationship means to their sons and daughters – has long interested Schoppe-Sullivan

She has studied how playing dolls predicts the behavior of new parents, a mother’s role in a father’s engagement with their baby, the division of childcare by dual-career couples and many more topics.

Her innovative studies have been featured in top academic journals. She also has received extensive funding from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health. In 2008, she received the prestigious National Science Foundation’s CAREER award to advance her research on the maternal gatekeeping and fathering behavior of new parents.

The significance of her work has been recognized and covered extensively by popular media, such as the New York Times, Washington Post, USA Today, Time, ABC News Radio, the Associated Press and numerous others worldwide.

Schoppe-Sullivan has served the family field in important leadership positions, including as chair of NCFR’s Theory Construction and Research Methodology workshop in 2011. She served on the board of the Ohio Council on Family Relations from 2007 to 2010, and is co-chair of NCFR’s Men in Families focus group. Her contributions to the field have been recognized widely by her peers, as evidenced by her membership on the editorial boards of the Journal of Marriage and Family, Journal of Family Theory and Review, Family Relations, Parenting: Science and Practice and Fathering.

Schoppe-Sullivan also has received numerous awards for excellent teaching. She has received awards for her mentorship of both undergraduate and graduate students, as well as for her instruction in the classroom. She was the recipient of Ohio State’s highest honor for faculty, the Alumni Award for Distinguished Teaching (2012). She also received the university’s Distinguished Undergraduate Research Mentor Award (2008) and the College of Education and Human Ecology Award for Distinguished Teaching (2011).

She earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Northwestern University and her PhD in developmental psychology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The National Council on Family Relations is the nation’s premier professional association for the multidisciplinary understanding of families. NCFR has a membership of more than 3,300 family researchers, practitioners and educators.